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McCarthy Delighted With Trio's Impact
Thursday, 6th Nov 2014 06:00

Boss Mick McCarthy was delighted with the impact Stephen Hunt, Jay Tabb and Kevin Bru made during Tuesday’s 2-1 home victory over his former club Wolves.

The trio, largely fringe players this season, are amongst those to have come into the side in recent games with several more regular starters out through injury.

“I did say to them beforehand that they’ve got to cause me a problem with picking the team,” McCarthy said.

“I told Hunty I wasn’t playing him and he was all upset and told me he was all right. I said ‘Are you 100 per cent?’ and he told me he was all right.

“So I told him he was playing and so he had to give me his lot or he would have been in trouble.”

Hunt, 33, who played for McCarthy at Wolves, rejoined the Blues one a one-year contract in the summer having signed short-term deals last season.

“I was delighted for him because a few questioned why I re-signed him,” McCarthy added. “I think Saturday’s performance and Tuesday’s performance spoke volumes without me needing to tell anybody why.”

The Town manager was similarly pleased with Jay Tabb, 30, and also with summer signing Kevin Bru, 25, who has quickly adapted to the rigours of the Championship.

“Tabby and Kevin Bru came in and I thought they were excellent, they ran themselves into the ground,” he said. “Bru’s a good player, he’s done really well and I’ve been delighted with him.”

Hunt, Tabb and Bru may well start against Watford at Portman Road on Saturday with a number of midfielders still sidelined.

Luke Hyam is suspended having reached five bookings and Cole Skuse and Teddy Bishop are both expected to miss out again due to their groin injuries. Jonny Williams (calf) and right-back Jonny Parr (groin) may train today and are more likely to return to action on Saturday.

Season ticket holders are entitled to purchase up to four further tickets at discounted prices for Saturday’s game. The additional tickets are priced at £10 for adults, £8 for seniors, students and under-20s, and £1 for U16s in all areas of the ground.


Photo: Action Images



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ITFC_Cairo added 06:46 - Nov 6
This is why Mick has made us promotion contenders this season. Players like Hunt, Tabb and Bru, the latter because he has never played in the C'ship before, are never going to play week in week out for a whole season. But when our first choice midfielders are injured, we have experienced and quality players who can still do a good job against the best teams in the league to replace them. Having Hunt, Tabb, Bru, Bialkowski and Tommy Smith come in as replacements for injuries makes me feel safe in the squad we have.
4

bluemikey100 added 07:18 - Nov 6
we are doin great spent 10 grand on 1 player everyone else spend millions even bournemouth 3 million on 1 player lol
3

itfcserbia added 07:34 - Nov 6
Common people fill the stands up with those ticket prices and help the boys to beat the bogie Watford! COYB!
8

pennblue added 07:53 - Nov 6
Hunt is a quality player. I don't think we have seen the best of him yet.
1

kuyski added 07:57 - Nov 6
Give Bru a new contract with no doubt.
13

Pilgrimblue added 08:19 - Nov 6
Bru is certainly one for the future and it was good to see him both defend and take shots when he could so expect him to score soon.
As for Hunty, he's playing great but wonder if he can cope with another game so soon. We certainly need to get other midfielders back soon so international break will be welcome. As for Watford, its going to be another hard game so just hope we can score at least 2
5

Hegansheroes added 08:39 - Nov 6
Tabb made a great impact missing a sitter, I can't see what he brings to the team. MM continually goes on about putting in a shift but you need more than working your socks off & it should go without saying that a player gives 100% & works his arxe off. All the top players do. Hunt should be weighing in with goals as should the midfield. How ever after that winge Murphy has become the player that made Celtic sign him, I didn't think he was much more than a target man but his finishing has been top quality, perhaps down to confidence, Bru is looking good too, a gamble turning into a very good signing.
-15

ingyblue added 09:16 - Nov 6
Without the work rate we had Tuesday night Wolves wouldn't have been under half as much pressure & it could have been a different game. Have to disagree with you about Tabb on that comment Hegansheroes
9

itfcserbia added 09:45 - Nov 6
Tabb closes both his and other peoples players down so often it's ridiculous. Granted, he's not the best creator of things, but every team needs that kind of player who breakes opponents ideas.
15

Maverick_Mitch added 09:47 - Nov 6
Was seriously worried when I heard we would be without five key players. However all their replacements played well and it wasn't by any means a second string team. Bit more strength in depth than we've had for a long time. Still worry about the late substitutions as we seem to go all out of shape and retreat into defensive mode. It's becoming a bad habit. Sure Watford thinking 'well as long as we can weather the early storm we can nick a couple in the last 10 and extra time'! And please North Lower give the ball back as against Blackburn when did they score(?) - in the last minute of extra time added by the ref for that!!!
4

muccletonjoe added 10:07 - Nov 6
A few hoodoo need breaking Saturday. Watford are certainly our bogey team and we never seem to win without luke hyam. Fingers crossed!
2

PJH added 10:12 - Nov 6
I think that Tabb and Hunt's performances had as much to do with us winning on tuesday as the more eyecatching performance of Murphy(although Murphy man of match).
I like your name though Hegansheroes,assuming it is based on Danny,as he is one of my all time ITFC "heroes",
-4

martinstev added 10:18 - Nov 6
I reckon Chambers as defensive midfielder this weekend as we have no hyam or skuse. Parr back at right back and tommy Smith keeps his place
-4

50yearsablue added 10:22 - Nov 6
I agree with those that see the good things that Tabb does. He often gets unfairly criticised in my opinion. He was neat and tidy all night and rarely wasted a ball but doesn't catch the eye because he just keeps it simple. I think that players like him, Hunt, Anderson etc. often get criticised because of the way MM wants them to play in the system. I thought our midfield played as well as at any time this season with movement and neat passing and then never giving Wolves any peace. Fortunately, we capitalised on 2 of their errors brought about by pressure.
14

Hockley added 11:43 - Nov 6
I fully endorse MM's feelings about Hunt and Bru. Thought they were both splendid on Saturday. Still have massive misgivings about Tabb who seems to spend a lot of time watching the play going on around him rather than getting stuck in. I am particularly nervous when MM brings him on as a sub in the last quarter of a game when we need strong tackling ball winners to keep the ball in the opponents half. Tabb and Parr together couldn't stop Huddersfield's winger.
Do others see something in Tabb that I don't? He wouldn't even be on the bench if I was picking the squad.
0

itfcserbia added 12:11 - Nov 6
Hockley - what I think you are not recognising in Tabb's play is how often he sort of "gets in the way". Imagine if you are a guy with the ball, you have an idea of something but there's this menace in your way, pressing you to go in the opposite direction. A lot of positional team play depends on those kind of players. For example, Claude Makelele was ridiculed by Real Madrid fans, but when he was on the pitch Real would concede like 25% less goals from open play. We too tend to concede from set pieces and similar situations, but not a lot of goals goes against our defensive team effort.
6

walberswicks added 12:27 - Nov 6
“I told Hunty I wasn't playing him and he was all upset "

“So I told him he was playing and so he had to give me his lot or he would out in January"

MM What a great man manager?
0

yun added 12:39 - Nov 6
@walberswicks - spot on. MM's use of praise is extremely shrewd most of the time. Bigging up these fringe players will only make the ones who missed out work harder to get their places back. Bring on Watford and pack the stands this weekend!
2

Hegansheroes added 12:40 - Nov 6
PJH, yes Danny H was a hero of mine when I was a kid, my mate was Ray Crawford when we spent hours kicking a ball around. My shooting was copied from DH-shoot at goal & the ball would go anywhere but near the goal. He was a great character & the last I heard of him he was working at a holiday camp in Clacton.
1

PJH added 12:54 - Nov 6
Hegansheroes-Two of the few good things that Jackie Milburn did here when he was Manager was start the youth team and sign Danny Hegan.I remember Danny as a skilled but inconsistant midfielder,when on form he was as good as anyone.He was an important part of the 1967/68 promotion side.As for your mates Ray Crawford,I can never quite decide in my own ind whether he or Paul Mariner was our best ever centre forward.
1

RegencyBlue added 13:01 - Nov 6
I think this season Tabb has got closer to the form he showed when he first got here, rather than last season when, for whatever reason, he never really got going.

At his best a modern day Micky Stockwell - not the most technically gifted player but you always get 110% out of him!
4

bohslegend added 14:29 - Nov 6
That's a very fair comparison RegencyBlue.
1

dubblue added 16:05 - Nov 6
Yep agree with the last comment.

No harm to have players at the fringe able to come in when the need arises whether due to injury or MM having to give a regular a kick-up the backside. Bru definitely looks like he has potential and Hunt's main problem was lack of fitness.
1

BergholtBru added 16:19 - Nov 6
The point is that players like Hunt & Bru give us more flair than the drab Hyam, Skuse combination. Bru should be first choice in midfield, + Williams of course, as far as I am concerned.
1

jocasaja added 17:31 - Nov 6
Brilliant result on Tuesday....who will Mick pick for Saturday ?? ...Also the best atmosphere at PR for a long while..How great would it be seeing the Chambers fist pump again !!..Lets get right behind them from the start and have the place rocking. Really looking forward to Saturday. Have just been on the Narwich sports page and had a little fun ha ha ha
1


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